Aurora`s Firehouse Becomes A Museum

September 04, 1990|By Hal Dardick.

A decade after Aurora`s vintage downtown fire station closed, it has opened its doors again, this time as the Aurora Regional Fire Museum.

Last Saturday, museum visitors were able to tour the first floor, a reconstructed replica of the original plan. It features antique fire equipment, including a 1917 Jeffry fire engine from Sandwich; a photographic history of firefighting; and one of Aurora`s oldest momentos, the Buckhorn Trophy.

Aurora firefighters claimed the trophy in 1880 after winning the state Firemen`s Competition three years in a row.

The first Aurora fire department was established in 1856 and called the Young American Fire Co.

In 1895, the department built the fire station on the northeast corner of Broadway and New York Street, where the museum is now housed. It is hoped that all of the renovation work will be completed at the museum by 1995.

Projected to cost nearly $1 million, it will feature a full complement of antique equipment once used in the surrounding area. The second floor will also have an auditorium for giving lectures and showing films on fire safety and a safety house where children can practice fire escape techniques.

``The ultimate goal is to have a very good educational museum,`` said Marc Roberts, president of the Aurora Fire Station Preservation Corp. ``It`s been a long, long time coming. Ever since the station closed, there have been people who have hoped this would become a museum.``

The opening follows a decade of uncertainty about whether the historic structure, now considered an integral part of the effort to rejuvenate the city`s downtown, would be demolished or rehabbed. During those years, more than one developer made an offer to buy the building, but later backed out.

In the late 1980s, it looked as if the building would be demolished, said museum Curator David Lewis.

But in 1987, the Aurora Fire Station Preservation Corp., a coalition of people interested in historic preservation and firefighting memorabilia, was formed. The city leased the building to them for $1 a year, provided they could open within three years.

The museum is still a long way from completing its work, and about $700,000 shy, Lewis said. It has received donations from the city, the township, the county, the Toyota national distribution center, based in Aurora, and individuals.

The museum will be open on Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Admission is $1 for adults and 50 cents for children. It is accepting donations at P.O. Box 1782, Aurora, 60507.